Animation after KingstOON - Animate Jamaica Certificate programme graduates Animators as Broadband Internet Access needed to partake in Global Animation Industry

CARIMAC (Caribbean Institute of Media and Communication) is getting their head in the Animation Game!

On Wednesday February 12^th 2014 they’ve graduated their first officially freshly baked batch of students from their Animate Jamaica Certificate programme from University of the West Indies Western Jamaica Campus as stated in “More production studios, professionals needed for local Animation industry”, published  Friday February 14, 2014 by Janet Silvera, Senior Gleaner Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner.

This marks the continuation of the very same Animate Jamaica Certificate programme that was launched after the successful launch of KingstOOn, the two (2) day Animation Conference and Festival held at the UWI Mona Visitors' Lodge & Conference Centre in Kingston, Jamaica on June 20^th-21^st, 2013 as reported in my blog article entitled “Inaugural KingstOOn Animation Competition a boost to local Animation Industry - State Minister Julian Robinson give Graphic Artists the chance to Feel this Moment Pitbull and Christina Aguilera Style”.

This is also the very same Animate Jamaica Certificate programme for which the Governor General Sir Patrick Allen’s Charity organization, the “I Believe Initiative” that sponsored 15 Visual Arts Students from the County of Surrey on Wednesday July 10^th 2013 as outlined in my Geezam blog article entitled “KingstOOn Animation Festival and GG’s “I Believe in Jamaica” Animation Training – Genesis of Animation Outsourcing”.

The graduates, 13 males and one 24-year-old female, are a follow-on to a previously minted batch of 29 who graduated from the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus on Saturday February 8^th 2014.

This most recent batch is notable in that there's a girl in the group, a BSc Graduate named Ashley Anguin. Interesting to note this, as Animate Jamaica certificate programme doesn’t recognize age or any other factors against becoming an Animator, save for a need to have a creative spirit, which explains why Martin Thomas, who's autistic, was also a graduate in this batch of Students.

This is all happening on an as-needed basis, which should be sweet relief for CEO for Reel Rock GSW Wayne Sinclair, as CARIMAC is gearing up to train another fifty (50) Animators by March 2014. So says the Director of CARIMAC Dr. Hopeton Dunn, quote: “We are at a stage where we are renewing another round of training for 50 additional students who will commence in March”.

This must be fantastic news for Reel Rock GSW as they are in need of another 80 animators to start production of fifty two (52) episodes of Disney Channel/Nickelodeon Cartoon series “Lucky Fred” by March 2014 as explained in my blog article entitled “Animation after KingstOON - Reel Rock GSW reveals that the Imira Entertainment of Spain Contract is for Disney Channel and Nickelodeon's Lucky Fred”.

Animation Money Machine – Cultural Shift, Legislation and Broadband Internet Required

MINISTER OF State in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce Sharon Ffolkes-Abrahams, who was in attendance, made some interesting points, as most Ministers are wont to do at these occasions:

1.      10 Animation studios with a Minimum staff of fifty (50) needed to boost Jamaica's Animation Capacity

2.      US$68 billion is the estimated size of the Global Animation Outsourcing Industry

3.      12.5% is the year-on-year growth rate of the Global Animation Outsourcing Industry

Not so crazy about these estimates, as they seem to change whenever these Ministers speak and get reported in the Newspaper. Also, despite assistance from the World Bank and Canada's ToonBoom in empowering Animate Jamaica Certificate, all this is for naught if there is no Broadband Internet to power these Fifty (50) Animation Studios, many of which will have no choice but to be located in Kingston.

This will take them away from the rest of the island, where the raw talent in Visual Arts may be located. These talented individuals would be greatly inconvenienced in terms of Travel and accommodations to work in this burgeoning Industry. People who work in the creative Industry work best in their home town, where they draw spiritual energy from their familiar and comfortable surroundings.

I’m also surprised that the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts got the snub, as they aren’t named as being a part of the Animate Jamaica initiative as listed in my original Geezam blog article entitled “KingstOOn Animation Festival and GG’s “I Believe in Jamaica” Animation Training – Genesis of Animation Outsourcing”. Hopefully this oversight will be corrected soon.

A Cultural Shift among Jamaicans is needed as well, as the perception still exists in the general populace that this is an Upper St. Andrew “Thing” that’s not accessible to all Jamaicans from all walks of life. This Cultural Shift is best achieved via Jamaicans being made to realize via a GOJ PR (Public Relations) Campaign to sensitize them to the earning potential of Animation and those who pursue the Visual Arts whose Talents are needed to power Jamaica’s fledgling Animation Industry.

Worse, the Computer Requirements may be out-of-reach of the typical Jamaican as noted in my blog article entitled “Animation after KingstOOn - How to get free Video Editing Tools to breathe life into your Animation Project”. At least the Video Editing software can be easily obtained for Free, with other resources providing Software for Image Editing.

This is the kind of Projects that you can get as you’ll have to freelance as a photographer until Animation gigs e.g. Commercials, Illustration work as explained in my blog article entitled “Animation After KingstOOn – Free Photo Editing Software and How to get a copy of Adobe Photoshop CS2 absolutely Free” come rolling along.

The GOJ (Government of Jamaica) needs to get hopping on getting the New Telecom Regulator and the Regulatory framework in place to facilitate FDI (Foreign Direct investor) Telecom Providers coming to Jamaica to do 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution) as described in my blog article entitled “New Telecom Regulator finally coming by July 2014 - New Telecom Provider looking for stability in the Jamaican Telecoms Market post-LNP and MNP by May 2014”.

But why wait for them? You can start your own Animation Studio and publish your Animation works online on your own website similar to making money from Stock Photography as I’d explained in my blog article entitled “How Jamaicans can make money from Stock Photography – Moneymaking from taking photos of the everyday Mundane”. You can also gain Animation clientele via Odesk and Elance, allowing you to partake in this Global Animation Industry from the Comfort of your Home.